Swim With The Sharks

Survivor Pool

Welcome to the 2012 Fantasy Football season. For the first time in NFL history, five teams started rookie quarterbacks to lead their teams into Week 1. For the most part, this experiment proved unsuccessful as most of these quarterbacks failed to receive a warm welcome to the league. In fact, only Robert Griffin III earned a victory with an impressive debut where his Washington Redskins upset Drew Brees and the New Orleans Saints. Ryan Tannehill, Andrew Luck, Brandon Weeden, and Russell Wilson combined for only one touchdown and a whopping eleven interceptions.

How did your team perform in their debut? If your team played against Matt Ryan or Tony Romo, then I may owe you a box of Kleenex to dry your tears as both of these quarterbacks posted huge numbers last week.

Let’s take a dive into Week 2 to discuss several key players that may make a difference for your team.

I may be the only analyst giving Fitzy any love this week, especially after his sub-par performance in Week 1 that included three picks. Fortunately, he shook off the rust and led an unsuccessful comeback effort against the New York Jets. Expect a rebound for Fitzpatrick against Kansas City, since the Chiefs were just torched by Atlanta Falcons’ Matt Ryan. In addition, he owned Kansas City last season with a four touchdown performance. Expect Fitzpatrick to light-up Arrowhead Stadium on Sunday.
Week 2 Forecast: 250 passing yards and 2 touchdowns

Generally, you will not see AP on this list since he is a must-start fantasy stud. Given his recovery from injury, owners may still show hesitance in starting the Vikings’ running back due to fear of limited carries or a split workload with backup Toby Gerhart. If you turn back the clock a few weeks, Peterson was unlikely to start the regular season or at least play a minimal role in Minnesota’s offense. Apparently “AP” healed almost as fast as the T-1000, as he carried the ball 17 times for 84 yards with two scores. Peterson seems to be “All Day” yet again and welcomes an attractive matchup against the Indianapolis Colts who were just trampled by Chicago Bears’ running backs Matt Forte and Michael Bush for 122 rushing yards and 34 receiving yards.

There is no argument that Megatron serves as Matthew Stafford’s top target. However, there is much debate on who is his second favorite target. During the offseason, Titus Young surfaced as the apparent runner-up target for Stafford. Rather, veteran Nate Burleson received eight targets for six catches resulting in 69 yards. Detroit will struggle running the ball against San Francisco’s line, so look for Stafford to throw all game long. It is also unlikely that Detroit’s tight ends will be targeted as often this week, which should allow a strong outing for Burleson.

Don’t give up on Fred Davis after one disappointing week. Davis caught only two passes for 38 yards and was targeted only four times. Robert Griffin III and Pierre Garcon were on the same page all game, which resulted in less attention for Davis. Unfortunately, Garcon injured his foot and is questionable to play Sunday. Over the years, Davis has never delivered much success against his Week 2 opponent, the St Louis Rams. However, St Louis’ secondary allowed 12 catches for 126 yards to tight ends last week. In fact, the Detroit Lions threw twenty times to their tight ends as they identified St Louis’ weakness. With Garcon sidelined or potentially limited on Sunday, look for Davis to have a solid outing.
Week 2 Forecast: 75 receiving yards and 1 touchdown

DST: New England Patriots

The New England Patriots were one of the worst performing fantasy defenses in 2011. During the offseason, the Pats’ reengineered their defense to be quicker and younger, which appeared evident in their Week 1 win over the Tennessee Titans. New England has a favorable matchup against the Arizona Cardinals who are yet to announce whether Kevin Kolb or John Skelton will be steering the helm. Neither option should intimidate New England’s improved defense. Start them with confidence.
Week 2 Forecast: 75 receiving yards and 1 touchdown

WEEK 1 RESULTS:

Apparently, I am also not being welcomed warmly to the season. Although the prediction on Russell Wilson was not a complete miss, several of my other forecasts ended up being terrible!

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